The banks of dunes, cliffs and other shoreline properties are subject to highly undesirable erosion. Due to the cycling of temperature, moisture, freezing and other conditions, the surface layers thereof typically are unstable, and tend to creep downwardly in shear. Sooner or later their facings will "let go," sometimes giving rise to serious dislocations, unless steps are taken to secure the unstable surface layers against creep erosion.
It is known that the roots of vegetation planted along such banks tend to secure the unstable surface layers against creep erosion. In a storm, however, the banks of such shoreline properties are subjected to powerful winds and wave action, that often carries away the facing soil, and with it, any vegetation rooted therein.
So-called "armoring" techniques, such as those of U.S. Pat. No. 4,135,843 to Umemoto et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,560 to Reilly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,313 to Risi et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,405,217 to Dias et al., have attempted to prevent shoreline erosion by so fortifying the shoreline with blocks, plantable cement structures, fabric nets, high density weighted polymer mattresses, weighted cylindrical geocells and the like as to form a prophylactic layer over the region of the shoreline that would otherwise be subject to the erosive effects of the moving water and wind. Due to their weight and bulk, such armoring techniques are often difficult to install. Often, they are so configured as to prevent the enjoyment of the region of the shoreline that they overlay. Moreover, there is the difficulty of being able to adequately anchor the armor to the underlying soil. Water incident to the layer is accelerated in such way as to wash away beach at the beach/armor interface, thereby degrading adjacent, unprotected property. And the prophylactic layer itself is subjected to being washed away in a severe storm, or could collapse due to natural shifts in the embankment material or from landslides due to heavy rains.